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How To Get Tested For Chlamydia Female

Who Is At Risk For Chlamydia

“Chlamydia Information: Testing, Symptoms and Treatment” by getSTDtested.com

Any sexually active person can be infected with chlamydia. It is a very common STD, especially among young people.3 It is estimated that 1 in 20 sexually active young women aged 14-24 years has chlamydia.5

Sexually active young people are at high risk of acquiring chlamydia for a combination of behavioral, biological, and cultural reasons. Some young people dont use condoms consistently.15 Some adolescents may move from one monogamous relationship to the next more rapidly than the likely infectivity period of chlamydia, thus increasing risk of transmission.16 Teenage girls and young women may have cervical ectopy .17 Cervical ectopy may increase susceptibility to chlamydial infection. The higher prevalence of chlamydia among young people also may reflect multiple barriers to accessing STD prevention services, such as lack of transportation, cost, and perceived stigma.16-20

Men who have sex with men are also at risk for chlamydial infection since chlamydia can be transmitted by oral or anal sex. Among MSM screened for rectal chlamydial infection, positivity has ranged from 3.0% to 10.5%.6.7 Among MSM screened for pharyngeal chlamydial infection, positivity has ranged from 0.5% to 2.3%.7.8

What Do The Results Mean

A positive result means you have been infected with chlamydia. The infection requires treatment with antibiotics. Your health care provider will give you instructions on how to take your medicine. Be sure to take all the required doses. In addition, let your sexual partner know you tested positive for chlamydia, so he or she can be tested and treated promptly.

Learn more about laboratory tests, reference ranges, and understanding results.

What Are The Signs Of Chlamydia Or Gonorrhea

Many people who have chlamydia or gonorrhea dont have any signs or symptoms. When there are symptoms, chlamydia and gonorrhea cause very similar things.

Women with symptoms may have:

  • Abnormal discharge from the vagina
  • Burning when they urinate
  • Bleeding between periods

Men with symptoms may have:

  • Abnormal discharge from the penis
  • Burning when they urinate
  • Painful or swollen testicles

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How Can Chlamydia Be Prevented

Latex male condoms, when used consistently and correctly, can reduce the risk of getting or giving chlamydia.53 The surest way to avoid chlamydia is to abstain from vaginal, anal, and oral sex, or to be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested and is known to be uninfected.

How Long Does It Take To Show Up In The Throat

Chlamydia test and home chlamydia test for men and women

Symptoms of chlamydia in your throat are typically caused by having oral sex with someone whos contracted the infection.

Its much less common to notice throat symptoms, but they may still appear after a week or so, up to a few months or longer.

STI tests that look for chlamydia arent always done on the throat since its an area that does not carry the infection often. Ask your doctor for a throat swab or other chlamydia test if you think youve been exposed through oral sex.

Here are the most common symptoms of chlamydia in both people with penises and people with vulvas.

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What Are The Symptoms Of Chlamydia

Chlamydia is known as a silent infection because most infected people are asymptomatic and lack abnormal physical examination findings. Estimates of the proportion of chlamydia-infected people who develop symptoms vary by setting and study methodology two published studies that incorporated modeling techniques to address limitations of point prevalence surveys estimated that only about 10% of men and 5-30% of women with laboratory-confirmed chlamydial infection develop symptoms.21.22 The incubation period of chlamydia is poorly defined. However, given the relatively slow replication cycle of the organism, symptoms may not appear until several weeks after exposure in those persons who develop symptoms.

In women, the bacteria initially infect the cervix, where the infection may cause signs and symptoms of cervicitis , and sometimes the urethra, which may result in signs and symptoms of urethritis . Infection can spread from the cervix to the upper reproductive tract , causing pelvic inflammatory disease , which may be asymptomatic 23 or acute, with typical symptoms of abdominal and/or pelvic pain, along with signs of cervical motion tenderness, and uterine or adnexal tenderness on examination.

Men who are symptomatic typically have urethritis, with a mucoid or watery urethral discharge and dysuria. A minority of infected men develop epididymitis , presenting with unilateral testicular pain, tenderness, and swelling.24

Is There Any Preparation Required Before The Test

For the urine sample, you should abstain from urinating for at least one hour before the test. The sample to be tested must consist of first-catch urine. First-catch urine is about 20-30 ml of the initial urine stream. The sample shouldnt consist of anything more than first-catch urine, as this might dilute the sample.

Women are encouraged to avoid cleansing the labial area before providing a sample. Otherwise, there is no special preparation required for the test.

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Men May Experience The Following Symptoms:

  • pain when peeing.
  • discharge from the tip of the penis .
  • pain in the testicles
  • burning or itching in the genital area.

Remember: most people have no symptoms, so if you notice any of the above, get a full sexual health check at your local GUM/STI clinic.

The best way to make sure you dont get chlamydia is to use condoms.

Who Should Get Tested For Chlamydia

Chlamydia Symptoms in Women

We recommend getting tested for chlamydia if you:

  • Have had sex with an infected partner
  • Have had unprotected oral, vaginal, or anal sex
  • Have new or multiple sex partners
  • Show chlamydia symptoms
  • Are pregnant
  • Want to check your status
  • Are entering a new relationship

How Often Should You Get Tested?

If you believe you may have been exposed to chlamydia, you should get tested. Because certain people are at higher risk of getting chlamydia, the CDC recommends at least yearly testing for the following groups:

  • Sexually active women under 25
  • Women with risk factors like new or multiple sex partners
  • Men who have sex with men

Pregnant women should test for chlamydia during their first prenatal visit and again during the third trimester if they are under 25 or have risk factors.1

Getting tested regularly for chlamydia and other common sexually transmitted diseases is important. Untreated chlamydia infection can cause serious health complications like:

  • Infertility
  • Increased risk of contracting other sexually transmitted infections such as HIV, if exposed

What Should You Do If You Test Positive?

We understand how stressful testing positive can be. The good news is that chlamydia is curable and, if caught early, it wont cause lasting health problems. You should also discuss your status with your sexual partner so they can get tested and treated.

Read more about our doctor consultation.

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How Long Does It Take To Show Up On A Test

There are several tests that you doctor might use to diagnose chlamydia:

  • Urine test. Youll pee in a cup thats sent off to a laboratory testing facility to see if any chlamydia bacteria are present in your urine.
  • Blood test. Your doctor will use a sterile needle to draw some of your blood and send it to a lab to see if antibodies to the chlamydia bacteria are present in your bloodstream.
  • Swab. Your doctor will use a cotton round or stick to take a small sample of tissue or fluid that carries the infection, which is then sent to a lab to be cultured so that lab technicians can see what bacteria grows from the sample.

How long it takes for the results to show up depends on the test and on your specific health insurance plan.

  • Urine tests take about 2 to 5 days to show a positive or negative result.
  • Blood tests can come back with results in a few minutes if the blood is analyzed on site. But they can take a week or more if sent to an off-site lab.
  • Swab results take about 2 to 3 days to show a positive or negative.

1 to 3 weeks to show up in people with vulvas.

Symptoms may take up a few months to show up. This is because bacteria are living creatures and have an incubation period that affects how long it takes them to cluster together and become infectious.

This incubation period is dependent on a variety of factors, including:

Where Can I Get More Information

Health care providers with STD consultation requests can contact the STD Clinical Consultation Network . This service is provided by the National Network of STD Clinical Prevention Training Centers and operates five days a week. STDCCN is convenient, simple, and free to health care providers and clinicians. More information is available at www.stdccn.orgexternal icon.

Division of STD Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-38271-800-783-987

References

1. OFarrell N, Morison L, Moodley P, et al. Genital ulcers and concomitant complaints in men attending a sexually transmitted infections clinic: implications for sexually transmitted infections management. Sexually transmitted diseases 2008 35:545-9.

2. White JA. Manifestations and management of lymphogranuloma venereum. Current opinion in infectious diseases 2009 22:57-66.

3. Kreisel KM, Spicknall IH, Gargano JW, Lewis FM, Lewis RM, Markowitz LE, Roberts H, Satcher Johnson A, Song R, St. Cyr SB, Weston EJ, Torrone EA, Weinstock HS. Sexually transmitted infections among US women and men: Prevalence and incidence estimates, 2018. Sex Transm Dis 2021 in press.

4. CDC. Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance, 2019. Atlanta, GA: Department of Health and Human Services April 2021.

5. Torrone E, Papp J, Weinstock H. Prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis Genital Infection Among Persons Aged 1439 Years United States, 20072012. MMWR 2014 63:834-8.

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How To Test For Chlamydia: Naat

The main test for a Chlamydia infection is the nucleic acid amplification test or NAAT. This test is used to detect the DNA of the Chlamydia bacterium. The NAAT test is the most accurate test for Chlamydia infections that is available. It comes with the advantage that it can be done on a urine sample.

What Happens If Chlamydia Is Left Untreated

Fewer Women Are Getting Tested for ChlamydiaHere

There are many health risks if the infection is left untreated. In women, the infection can cause pelvic inflammatory disease. Pelvic inflammatory disease in turn can give rise to conditions like damaged fallopian tubes or even cause infertility.

Chlamydia can also cause ectopic pregnancy in women. In pregnant women, it can cause premature birth, and infection to new born child . The new born child may develop infection or pneumonia if the mother is infected with Chlamydia.

In men, it can cause a condition called nongonococcal urethritis which is an infection of the Urethra,epididymitis which is an infection of epididymis, that is the tube that carries sperm away from the testesa or proctitis, which is inflammation of the rectum.

Like all sexually transmitted diseases, the precautionary measure against Chlamydia is to practice safe sex and avoid having multiple sexual partners. It is also important to get a screening test done as soon as any symptom is noticed. When treated at the right time, the disease is curable.

Be safe, be healthy!

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Frequently Asked Questionsexpand All

  • What is a sexually transmitted infection ?

    A sexually transmitted infection is an infection spread by sexual contact. There are many STIs. This FAQ focuses on chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. These STIs can cause long-term health problems and problems during pregnancy. Having an STI also increases the risk of getting human immunodeficiency virus if you are exposed to it.

  • What is chlamydia?

    Chlamydia is the most commonly reported STI in the United States. Chlamydia is caused by a type of bacteria, which can be passed from person to person during vaginal sex, oral sex, or anal sex. Infections can occur in the mouth, reproductive organs, urethra, and rectum. In women, the most common place for infection is the cervix .

  • What are the risk factors for chlamydia?

    The following factors increase the risk of getting chlamydia:

  • Having a new sex partner

  • Having more than one sex partner

  • Having a sex partner who has more than one sex partner

  • Having sex with someone who has an STI

  • Having an STI now or in the past

  • Not using condoms consistently when not in a mutually monogamous relationship

  • Exchanging sex for money or drugs

  • What are the symptoms of chlamydia?

    Chlamydia usually does not cause symptoms. When symptoms do occur, they may show up between a few days and several weeks after infection. They may be very mild and can be mistaken for a urinary tract or vaginal infection. The most common symptoms in women include

  • yellow discharge from the vagina or urethra

  • yellow vaginal discharge

  • Some Of The Best Home Chlamydia Tests

    Below, we look at some testing options for individuals to consider. People can take several of the tests at home, whereas others require a lab visit.Please note that the writer of this article has not tried these products. All information presented is purely research-based and correct at the time of publication.

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    How You Prevent It

    Remember to always practice safer sex and use condoms. This will lower the risk of getting chlamydia or other STIs.

    If you find out that you have chlamydia, your partner need to be told that they could have an infection – even if there aren’t any symptoms. If you have concerns about telling your partner, contact a public health nurse.

    The public health nurse can suggest ways to handle the situation or they will contact your partner for you. Of course, your name will be kept confidential.

    You can get chlamydia from having vaginal, oral or anal sex without a condom, or sharing sex toys with an infected person.

    What Should I Do If I Have Chlamydia

    “I Know” Home Test Kit for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea

    Chlamydia is easy to treat. But you need to be tested and treated as soon as possible.

    If you have chlamydia:

    • See a doctor or nurse as soon as possible. Antibiotics will treat chlamydia, but they will not fix any permanent damage to your reproductive organs.
    • Take all of your medicine. Even if symptoms go away, you need to finish all of the antibiotics.
    • Tell your sex partner so they can be tested and treated. If they are not tested and treated you could get chlamydia again.
    • Avoid sexual contact until you and your partner have been treated and cured. Even after you finish your antibiotics, you can get chlamydia again if you have sex with someone who has chlamydia.
    • See your doctor or nurse again if you have symptoms that don’t go away within a few days after finishing the antibiotics.

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    Is There A Cure For Chlamydia And Gonorrhea

    Yes. Chlamydia and gonorrhea can both be cured with the right treatment. If these STDs arent treated, they can cause serious health problems, like making it difficult or impossible for a woman to get pregnant.

    If you have an STD, its important to get treatment right away. Its also important to tell anyone youve had sex with that you have an STD so they can get treated, too. This can help protect you from getting infected again.

    What Happens During A Chlamydia Test

    Chlamydia testing can be as simple as peeing in a cup. Sometimes the test is done by gently rubbing your genitals with a cotton swab, to take cell samples from your urethra, vagina, cervix, or anus. The samples are tested for chlamydia bacteria. Your doctor may also be able to see chlamydia symptoms, like discharge on your cervix, during an exam.

    Chlamydia can look like other common STDs like gonorrhea, so your nurse or doctor might test for a few infections.

    The idea of getting tested may seem scary, but try not to freak out. STD testing is a regular part of being a responsible person and taking care of your health. The good news is chlamydia is totally curable with medication so the sooner you know you have it, the faster you can get rid of it.

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    How Usual Is Chlamydia

    In 2017, more than 1.7 million cases of chlamydia were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Avoidance . Nevertheless, many cases go unreported, so the real number of chlamydia infections every year might be closer to 3 million.

    Men and women can both get the infection, but extra instances in ladies are reported.

    Infection prices are greatest amongst younger ladies, with the highest rates of infection occurring in women between ages 15 and 24.

    The CDC recommends that all sexually energetic females ages 25 years and more youthful obtain screened for chlamydia annually, in addition to older women with danger variables like several or brand-new companions.

    Statistically, an individual is more likely to get an STI if theyve had sex with more than a single person. Other risk factors include having had an STI in the past, or currently have an infection since this could lower resistance.

    Prices for chlamydia and various other STIs have actually been climbing up over the last few years.

    What Complications Can Result From Chlamydial Infection

    Chlamydia STD Home Test Kit

    The initial damage that chlamydia causes often goes unnoticed. However, chlamydial infections can lead to serious health problems with both short- and long-term consequences.

    In women, untreated chlamydia can spread into the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease . Symptomatic PID occurs in about 10 to 15 percent of women with untreated chlamydia.30,31 However, chlamydia can also cause subclinical inflammation of the upper genital tract . Both acute and subclinical PID can cause permanent damage to the fallopian tubes, uterus, and surrounding tissues. The damage can lead to chronic pelvic pain, tubal factor infertility, and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancy.32,33

    Some patients with chlamydial PID develop perihepatitis, or Fitz-Hugh-Curtis Syndrome, an inflammation of the liver capsule and surrounding peritoneum, which is associated with right upper quadrant pain.

    In pregnant women, untreated chlamydia has been associated with pre-term delivery,34 as well as ophthalmia neonatorum and pneumonia in the newborn.

    Reactive arthritis can occur in men and women following symptomatic or asymptomatic chlamydial infection, sometimes as part of a triad of symptoms formerly referred to as Reiters Syndrome.35

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